Chicago man to testify against co-defendants

March 16, 2009

A Chicago man charged with the 2007 murder of a Villa Park man pleaded guilty today to a lesser crime and agreed to testify against two of his co-defendants.

Joshua Gordon, 21, was sentenced to 15 years in prison by DuPage County Judge Peter Dockery after pleading guilty to home invasion and agreeing to testify in the pending murder trials of Ray Moore and Semaj Walker, both of Chicago.

Dywayne Head, 19, of Chicago, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 20 years in prison in November to home invasion in connection with the same incident and also agreed to testify.

Assistant DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Stanker told Dockery that the four co-defendants arrived at the home of James Keniski, 46, in the first block of North Addison Road in Villa Park, on May 16, 2007. After learning that he had a mutual friend with the four men, he let them in, not knowing that their plan was to rob him.

Prosecutors have stated that Walker, 23, pushed Keniski over a banister 10 feet to the ground, causing severe injuries. Keniski was then repeatedly kicked. He died from his injuries several days later.

Defense attorney Jeffrey Kendall said Gordon had no previous criminal record and that prosecutors dropped the murder charge after Gordon gave a full confession and a statement about the incident to prosecutors.

Had he been convicted of murder, Gordon would have been sentenced to 20 to 60 years at 100 percent. He has been in the DuPage County Jail for two years and is expected to be released in 5 ½ more years after serving half of the 15-year sentence.